Illegal Sports - Dogfighting

Dogfighting

Dog fighting is a practice, illegal in many jurisdictions, where two dogs, often a pit bull breed, are put into an area to fight and sometimes kill each other. Dog fighting has been reported as far back as 43 A.D. when the Romans invaded Britain. Both sides employed fighting dogs, and out of their wartime use grew a sport, which achieved great popularity, particular in Britain and later the United States.

Dogfighting can involve high stakes, and carries with it the same sociological dangers of other gambling, and particularly illegal gambling, activities.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals focuses heavily on the issue on dog fighting. There are various levels of dog fighting. There is “street” level, which means that the dogfights are informal because strict rules and regulations are absent from the matches. Another level is “hobbyists”, which are fights that are formally organized. They are mainly scheduled for income and speculators. The final level of dog fighting is “professional.” At the professional level, owners usually have more that fifty fighting dogs and carefully examine the specific breed, lineage, and winning history of each dog.

Dog fighting is illegal in every U.S. state and in many countries around the world (Britain, where it was quite popular, banned it as far back as the 1830s), although enforcement in other countries is frequently lax or nonexistent. Dog fighting is a felony in all states except Idaho and Wyoming, where it's a misdemeanor. It is illegal to possess dogs for fighting in all states but Georgia, Idaho, and Nevada. Among the states where possession of fighting dogs is illegal, it’s a felony in all of them except for New York, Texas, West Virginia, and Wyoming.